


Before I was a Flower

by hTeDruknenPotaT



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Chara's past, Childhood, Flowey's past, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mentions of Suicide, Post-Pacifist Route, Spoilers - Pacifist Route, papyrus feeds flowey spaghetti
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-04
Updated: 2015-11-08
Packaged: 2018-04-30 01:52:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5145875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hTeDruknenPotaT/pseuds/hTeDruknenPotaT
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After migrating to the surface, Flowey is haunted by memories of Chara.  But as he spends more time with Frisk, the memories gradually begin to fade.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic isn't gonna be too long, but I decided to divide it into a couple chapters just to make things easier on myself.
> 
> Obviously, this takes place post-pacifist ending.

Why did you come to the surface with everyone else when you could have just stayed underground?  Anyone can answer that question.  The underground would get boring eventually.  And you hate to be bored.

You hate so much of your existence.  Everything has happened again and again and there isn’t much left to be anything _but_ boring.  Still, you haven’t given up yet.  You’ll stay on the surface as long as this world keeps existing.

Lately... you hate to admit it, but you’ve been almost sufficiently entertained.  This is the first time you’ve ever been to the surface in all your lifetimes.  As far as you can remember?  Is there a possibility you wouldn’t remember?  Most likely.

Anything’s possible.

You begin by watching them from afar.  Frisk has gotten this far, and anything you say at this point, well.... Any more threats, and you’ll just wind up making a fool of yourself.  You’ve tried time and time again to stop them.  But you don’t care anymore.  And neither do they, obviously.  So you watch them.  And all their little friends, having a grand old time.

You hang around until repetition starts to sink in.  You watch the same sun rise and set, you hear the same awful puns over and over, the same hysterical low-pitched and soft-pitched giggling, the same frustrated groans....

You can’t stand repetition.

You’re done with it.

You sneak around under the earth until you catch Frisk alone.  You don’t think you could stand dealing with the others yet.  You hear their feet directly above your head.  Then, you whisper,

“Hey, buddy.”

Frisk looks down, puzzled.  Not terrified like you expected.  Or hoped.  When did Frisk ever look scared?  Even mildly startled?  

“Down here!”  You pop your head out of the ground.  “Hello!  It’s me, Flowey!”

Frisk blinks.  They crouch down beside you.  They reach out a hand.  You flinch.  The hand pauses.  Then, it comes down to pat your head lightly.  “Heh, after all this time... you’re still such a fool...”  You laugh mirthlessly.

“Sorry,” Frisk says softly.  “I can’t help myself?”

“Right.  You’re only like this because you’re _so used to it_ that your conscience couldn’t stand even one kill.  It’s just beat into your system now.  Shoulda started killing when you had the chance.  Then maybe you could... you could...”

You trail off as Frisk strokes your stem.  You sigh and lean into the touch.  You curl and wrap around their finger.  “Where’s that smiley trashbag when you need him...” you mutter.  “He’s not here, so I guess I’ll have to say it...”

“I’ve got you wrapped around my finger,” Frisk giggles.

“Yeah, yeah.  Guess that one’s obvious.”  You wrap a bit tighter.  This possibility...  You haven’t lived it... you could do anything, really.  Strangle Frisk right now just to see what would happen.  Yeah, _that_ might be interesting.  Why not?  What else can you do?  They’re practically _letting_ you do this!  “Kid, you got a death wish?”

Frisk tugs their finger.  It starts to turn a boring shade of white.  “Heheh... you’ll have to cut off my stem if you want me to let you go.  Kill or be killed, remember?”

“That’s not true!”

Through Frisk’s squinted eyes, you see a spark of determination.  Suddenly, you’re blasted away.  “You!  Leave Frisk alone!”

You blink.  Through your dizziness, you register a large figure looming over you.  She bends over Frisk and helps them up.  “Are you alright?”

Frisk nods.  They look back at you one last time before taking Toriel’s hand and following her inside their new home.  On their face, you detect a faint smile.

You despise that human.

No, you don’t.  Even after all this time, you can’t find it in your heart to hate.  Hating is as impossible as loving.  Or is it?  What is true hatred like?  You don’t really remember it, even back from when you did have a soul.

Back when you were Asriel...  No, you don’t think you ever hated anyone.

✿✿✿

You didn’t have a reason to hate.  From the moment you first opened your eyes, you felt almost nothing but the love of those around you.  The way your mother held you made you feel safe.  The way your father kissed you made you laugh.  There was a time when you can remember his face when you gave him that macaroni art, addressed to “King Dad.”

You had friends, you had family, they gave you so much love that there was no room for hate.  That isn’t to say you were always happy.  Most of the time, though, you were.  You would get upset over childish things.  Like stubbing your toe.  Wishing that humans and monsters never had to fight.

You never knew hate until you knew Chara.

Only someone like them could help you understand something so potent and powerful.

✿✿✿

Your name was Asriel Dreemurr.  Once upon a time.

Once upon a time, you heard a crash.  Something hitting the ground.  You ran outside to see what happened.

You saw a small figure crumpled on the ground.  “Oh no...” you whispered.  “Are they... dead?”  You should have called your mother.  But you were rooted to the spot.  Until you thought you saw them stir.  You hurried over.

You bent down and felt for a pulse.  Something in the figure’s neck beat steadily.  “Oh good...”  You sighed in relief.  “Hello?” you called softly.  “Did you fall?”

A low moan escaped from the person.  You called again, but they barely seemed to hear you.  Finally, they moved.  Hanging their head, they struggled to stand.

“No, don’t get up!” you said.  The person managed to get to their feet, then pitched forward.  You caught them before they could fall.  “Come with me,” you said.  You put your arms around them.  They leaned heavily on you.  “I’ll get you home.”

You carried them to your house before they went completely limp.  You called for your parents.  As always, you called, and they came.

Your mother gasped.  Your father rushed to take the child and bring them inside.  He set them down on a bed in the guest bedroom.  You watched them tend to the child’s wounds.  “Are they... gonna be okay?” you asked.

“It does not look like anything is broken,” your mother said.

“Considering the height they fell from, it’s impressive,” said your father.  “But, don’t worry, Asriel, it looks like they only have a few bruises.”

“They’ll be alright.”

“Are... are you sure?”

Your mother smiled and affirmed it.  You all waited around for the child to wake up.  But for hours, they didn’t stir.  You asked again if they were going to be okay.  You asked a few more times.  The answer was the same, but as the hours dragged, your mother and father seemed less and less certain.  Finally, your mother suggested that a watched pot never boils, and perhaps they would wake up if everyone left them alone for a while.  You insisted on staying.

“They’ll be scared if they wake up alone,” you said.  “They won’t know where they are.  I’ll need your help to help them find their way home.”

Your mother and your father looked sad.  You asked what was wrong.  “Asriel...” said your father.  He bent low and placed his paws on your shoulders.  “The child... can’t ever go home.”

“Wh-what?  Why not?”

“Because once they wake up and meet you, they’ll love you so much that they’ll never want to leave,” said your mother.

“Uhh, that _could_ be true in normal circumstances,” your father said, smiling awkwardly.  “But... believe it or not, this is a human child.”

You gasped.  “Are you sure?”

“Yes.  I myself have seen real humans with my own eyes.  You’ll have to trust me on this, son.  They’re a human.  That means they... have no way of getting home.”

“But it’ll be alright!” your mother cut in.  She smiled.  “We’ll welcome them.  If they have nowhere else to stay, they can stay right here.  We won’t let them miss home too much.  You’ll help out, won’t you?”

Of course you would, you said.  They left you alone with the human.  You waited until they stirred again.  They moved their bangs out of the way, and blinked their eyes open.  Their eyes were so large when they weren’t concealed.  They looked around in a daze.

Their eyes met yours.

They grinned.

“Hello,” they said.

“Hello,” you returned.

“Why...” they muttered, rubbing their head.  “Why am I not dead?”

“Oh, you fell down the mountain, but you were okay!  Don’t you remember?  I found you!”

“Yes...”  The grin faded.

“Are you really a human?” you asked.

The child nodded.

“My name is Asriel,” you said.  “What’s your name?”

The child didn’t answer.  “I... sh-should have been dead...”

“Don’t worry, I promise you aren’t!  You aren’t even that badly hurt!  Is there something wrong?  Are you in pain?”

“Yes...”  The child stared ahead.  Their shoulders shook.  Suddenly, they burst into tears.  They covered their eyes and cried like you had never heard anyone cry before.  You felt your eyes sting.  Without a thought, you wrapped your arms around the shaking human.  You whispered reassurances to them.  They would be alright.  You were here now.  You would help them.

Your parents heard the noise and came to help.  They calmly explained to the child what had happened.  They could stay here until they were better.  They would take care of them.  Even if they could never get back home, they would do their best to give them everything they were missing.

Your mother asked for their name again.  The child didn’t answer.  “I understand if you don’t quite trust us yet, little one,” she sighed.  “You don’t have to give me your real name if you don’t want to.  I would just like to know what to call you.”

“If you want, we can give you a new name,” laughed your father.  “We could call you Snail Pie.”

The child reluctantly introduced theirself as Chara.  After that, your parents told them they’d all leave them alone to rest for a while.

“Wait.”

You all turned around on your way out.  Chara shakily pointed to you.  “You want Asriel to stay?” asked your mother.

Chara nodded.

“Asriel?” she asked.

You sat down next to their bed.  Your mother smiled and closed the door.  You sat with the human while they were silent for a very long time.  

Back then, they didn’t talk much.  You were worried they might not want you around.  But when you started to leave, they always stopped you.  So you stayed.  When they called, you came.  All you wanted was to help.  Even if you weren’t sure what you were even doing there.  You asked them to get better, at least for your sake.  “Please, even if you don’t want to be here, I want you here,” you said.  “Don’t give up yet!”

Your father told you Chara was barely hurt.  Still, they weren’t getting better.  They refused to eat.  “Would you prefer something sweeter?” your mother asked.

Chara shook their head, even at your mother’s most delicious pies.  If you were alone with them, sometimes you could urge them to eat just a little.

“Please share this pie with me?” you asked.  You waved a forkful in front of their face.

“I don’t understand,” Chara muttered.

“Don’t understand what?”

“Why you want me here... why you want me to share pie with you...  Don’t you want it all for yourself?”

“Pie tastes better when you share it with someone!” you said.

Chara took a bite.  They smiled.  They finished an entire slice.

Finally, they began telling you things.  Very disturbing things.  They didn’t fall down the mountain by accident.  They didn’t mean to be saved.  It didn’t matter that they were trapped in the world of monsters, because they never meant to return home in the first place.  Listening to them made you cry.  You couldn’t stand to hear about all the horrible things that pushed them to jump off the mountain.  Though, the more you cried, the less Chara did.  They told stories with complete and utter apathy on their faces.  Sometimes, they spoke with a vacant smile.

“I’m so sorry,” you told them.

“Why?  You didn’t do anything.”

“I didn’t know people could be so cruel.”

“Humans are cruel.”  Chara smiled.  “They’re really horrible.  But... monsters aren’t so bad.  You’ve let me stay here.  I wish I could stay longer.”

“You can stay for as long as you want!” you said.

“Until I’m better.  Then I’ll have to go somewhere else.”

“Wh-why would you think that?”

“Your dad said so.  He’d let me stay until I was better.”

“He... he meant _at least_ until you were better!  You don’t have to leave if you don’t want to!”

“Really...?”  Chara’s face brightened into a smile that might have been the first real smile you ever saw on them.  “I thought if I got better... I would have to leave.  Do you really mean it?  I can stay?”

“Of course you can!  Do you wanna ask my dad?”

Both your parents assured Chara that they could stay.  They were happy to have them.  As it turned out, Chara was holding out on recovering because they thought if they never recovered, they would never have to leave.

They began to eat.  Color returned to their cheeks.  They were quite pink.  You teased them for their extremely pink cheeks.  Chara laughed with you.  Their cheeks were getting so much excersize smiling, they said, that they couldn’t help being flushed all the time.

The hardest part of the day was bedtime.  You hated to leave Chara at the end of the day when your mother told you it was time to go to sleep.  “Don’t leave,” Chara begged.  “Please... I get scared.”

“I’ll be right in the next room.  If you need me, just call.”

“If you care about me,” they said softly, “you’ll stay.”

Of course I care about you, you told Chara.  But you had to listen to your mother.  “I’ll be back,” you whispered.

You winked at Chara behind your mother’s back.  They grinned back at you.  That night, you tiptoed down the hallway to visit Chara.  You stayed up well into the night, talking and playing games.  In retrospect, you laughed so much that you think your parents must have heard you.  You didn’t realize how late you stayed up until you woke up to find yourself tucked into bed next to Chara.

You walked out of the guest room that morning, groggy and confused.  “Good morning, sleepyhead,” your mother greeted.  “I was just talking to your father.  I think we can make some new living arrangements.”

“Only if you promise not to stay up all night,” your father added.

“Hm?”

They waited until Chara joined you.  They sat next to you at the breakfast table, and your parents suggested an idea that made you both grin in delight.  Your father asked Chara how they were sleeping.  Barely at all, Chara answered.  Would you sleep better if Asriel were there? asked your mother.  Of course they would, Chara said.

And so, with promises that you would behave yourselves, Chara moved into your room.

You couldn’t be happier.  Neither could they.

You thought that happiness could last forever.  You really believed that.

How could you have been so delusional?

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flowey can't forget how things used to be, when he was Asriel and there was Chara by his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear I'm making this up as I go along.

You understand hate completely.

You know _exactly_ what hate is because you hate everyone in this house so much that you’re ready to beg Frisk to reset the timeline just to get you out of this hell.  You manage to avoid Toriel when you can, but when you’re not around, she’s full of mushy gooey affectionate _fluff..._  Hugging Frisk, joking with Sans, feeding pie to everyone who comes by and telling them how _incredibly grateful she is to see them..._  She hasn’t shown much gooey sappiness to you, because you can tell she’s still apprehensive.  Just like you are of her.

Undyne is loud, Alphys is just plain annoying, and the one time you found yourself alone in a room with Sans, with a few choice words he made you fear for your life more than you can ever remember since becoming a flower.

But the worst, the absolute _worst,_ is his brother.  With his new job as captain of the royal guard, he’s made it his duty to water every flower in the kingdom.  His job, he insists, includes keeping _you_ well cared for.  As if you haven’t been existing on your own for timelines and timelines already.  As if you can’t take care of yourself!  That stupid skeleton thinks that all you need to be completely pacified is a little tender loving kindness.

He _sings to you._

He _feeds you spaghetti._

“YOU’RE GROWING SO BIG AND STRONG!” he croons.  “WITH MY HELP, YOU’LL BE A GIGANTIC, MONSTROUS TOWERING PLANT SOMEDAY.  BUT A VERY ATTRACTIVE MONSTROUS TOWERING PLANT.”

He asks you what your favorite song is.  “YO, SANS, WERE YOU SERIOUS ABOUT THOSE DEATH THREATS?” you call.

He doesn’t seem to recall any death threats.  He insists that you must be... pulling his bone?  Is that a thing people even say?  You think you’re saved when Toriel comes in and tells the skeletons that it’s Frisk’s bedtime, so they’ll have to quiet down.  You think she’s going to tell them to leave, but instead, she invites them to stay for _Netflix and Chill._  Sans asks if she’s serious.  Toriel nods and tells them she can’t wait to watch movies and relax with them.

Sans says ok.

They stay for a very long time.  You consider sneaking into Frisk’s room and strangling them while they sleep. That’ll get this over with.  You’ve seen every possibility until now, and you decide that this isn’t worth it to keep.

Toriel laughs at a joke you don’t understand.  Sans adds something to the joke.  Papyrus tries to hush them.  Good, they’re distracted.  You sneak out and pop back up in a hidden flower pot in Frisk’s room.  They’re lying in bed, not yet asleep.  They don’t seem to see you.

They’re staring at the ceiling.

Being so boring...  It isn’t worth it to kill them yet.  Not unless you’re going to get a good fight out of it.  Frisk looks like they might even just give in if you try to kill them at this point.

You’ll let them go.

For now.

For a few minutes, though, you watch them.  You can barely see their face.  With their face hidden, the colors of the room muted...

Dammit, they look _exactly_ like them.  No wonder you thought they were Chara at first.  Even though that was impossible.  Chara was dead.  Long dead, and if they weren’t, then you wouldn’t be here.

✿ ✿ ✿

Chara seemed like a great person.  They were bucketloads of fun on a good day.  You only noticed in retrospect how sad they made you feel.  When they remembered their past, they told you of things that made your heart ache.  And when you weren’t with them, you longed to be with them so badly that time passed at the speed of an unencouraged snail.

You laughed a lot, but you cried a lot, too.  Chara didn’t seem to feel quite the same way about you.  According to them, you made them so happy that they were almost able to forget.

You were the only thing that made life worth living.

Chara was funny.  They came up with the best pranks.  You giggled when you managed to startle another monster, but Chara positively howled.  They loved it.  Sometimes, though, they took things a little far.

Once, you caught them outside, sitting on their knees.  They were smiling and humming to theirself.  You came over to join them.  Chara held a small magnifying glass.  “Hi, Asriel!” they said cheerfully.

“Hi!  What’ve you got?”

“Toriel gave it to me.”

You felt a pang in your heart whenever they said your mother’s name.  “Do you remember what she said?”

“That she and Asgore could be my mommy and daddy if I want.”  Chara’s smile faded.  “I don’t need another mommy and daddy.  I never want to see my mommy and daddy again.  If I could, I’d....”  They trailed off.

You sat yourself next to them.  “Chara...” you whispered.  You reached a tentative arm around them to rest a paw on their shoulder.  You pulled them closer.

Without warning, Chara shoved your arm away.  “No, they escaped!” they yelled.

“H-huh?”

“Oh, no... they’re still here...”

Chara repositioned the magnifying glass, shining it on the ground.  They smiled again.  You heard a slight sizzling sound.  Confused, you looked down to see a beam of light shaking on the ground.

A spider was burning underneath.

“Wh-what are you—!”

Chara giggled.  “Look at them dancing!”

They waved the beam around.  Spiders scurried away frantically.  “CHARA, STOP!”

You tried to grab the magnifying glass away.  You wrestled with Chara on the ground until they frowned and threw it to the side.  “I don’t get it, Asriel,” they mumbled.  “You usually _like_ this!”

“I don’t like watching spiders get burned!  Did they hurt you, Chara?  Why would you do that?”

“I like to watch them dance,” they said simply.  “It’s like... you know, when we do pranks... it’s funny!”

“Only when we don’t hurt anyone!”

“Is that...”  Chara stared blankly at you.  They looked confused.  “Then... what makes pranking fun?”

“It’s fun... because we all get to laugh!”

“Oh, I get it!”  Chara’s entire face brightened.  “It’s like when you said that pie tastes better when you share it with other people!  It’s the same with laughs too, right?  They taste better when you laugh with other people!”

“Uh... yeah!”  Good, you were worried that you might start fighting...

“That’s why I’ve been so happy!  I get to laugh with you!”  Chara threw their arms around you.  “You’re right, Asriel!  Everything tastes better when you’re not alone!”

You hugged Chara back.  Oh man, it was so weird... even when Chara was so happy, somehow they still managed to make you sad.

✿ ✿ ✿

“AAARGH!!”

Frisk laughs and drops your petals to the ground, brandishing a pair of scissors.  All six of your yellow petals fall.  “THIS IS SICK, YOU DISGUSTING CREATURE!  LEAVING ME BALD IS NO WAY TO GET REVENGE!  YOU’LL HAVE TO KILL ME!”

“It’s just yellow fabric,” Frisk giggles.  They hold up a square.

“WE’RE MAKING COSTUMES FOR FRISK’S SCHOOL PLAY!” Papyrus announces.  “I HAVE DECIDED THAT THIS IS AN ACTIVITY THAT WE SHOULD ALL GET TOGETHER AND DO, AS EXTENDED FAMILY!  AS A GROUP OF FRIENDS THAT ARE SO CLOSE WE CAN NEARLY BE CONSIDERED FAMILY!”

Papyrus stitches a needle through some fabric, embroidering a design on what seems to be a cape.  Whatever.  You couldn’t care less what it is.  You’re pissed.  “Take it out of here.”

“WHY SHOULD WE, WHEN YOU COULD JOIN US?  YOU WOULD ENJOY IT!”

“No.  It’s stupid and dumb.”

“WE WOULD LOVE YOUR INPUT!”

Frisk holds up a pink square of fabric for you.  “You wanna help?”

“That was low, what you did,” you hiss.  “You may think it’s all fun and games to prank someone.  As long as no one gets hurt, right?  Except that with every prank, laughs aren’t possible unless someone _thinks_ they’ve been hurt for a moment.  Or experiences temporary joy only to have it _ripped away from them_ when they find out it was a joke all along.  Pranking is one of the cruel devices of the world.  An idiot like you, of course, would think it was harmless.  It’s what I said.  Kill or be killed, only _you_ think that—”

“Aw, lighten up.”  Sans leans over and places a poorly made party hat on your head.

You shake your whole body to get it off.  It slips down over your eyes.  “I WILL MURDER YOU ALL IN YOUR SLEEP!” you shout.

“I’d think.”  Sans’ voice comes in muffled through your papery prison.  “If you want us to do you a favor, you should ask nicely?”

“See?  This is what you people laugh at!  The suffering of others!  Every creature that possesses a soul is inherently cruel!  Cruel to your very beings!  You can’t escape it!”

You writhe around.  You hear giggling.  You sigh in resignation.  Maybe it’s a little hard to take you seriously while you’re wearing a sparkly purple party hat.  Well, you won’t give them the pleasure of giving in.  Not until the darkness lifts and you see Frisk’s face smiling at you.  Papyrus seems worried.  “I APOLOGIZE ON BEHALF OF MY BROTHER!  I ONLY WANTED TO MAKE YOU FEEL WELCOME!”

He glares at Sans.  Sans shrugs.  He says he meant well.  But beyond that stupid, empty smile, you can see.  You can see for _miles._  This skeleton will not stop at anything until he makes your life a living hell.  Well, two can play at this game.  You’ll target him at his weakest point, and make him suffer.  Taking out his brother would hurt him the most, you think.

“IF THAT HAT WAS TOO LARGE FOR YOU, WOULD YOU LIKE TO TRY A SMALLER ONE?  I HAVE MADE MANY IMPRESSIVE _SMALL_ HATS FOR SMALLER PEOPLE!  I KNOW YOU’D LOVE ONE!  WHICH COLOR IS YOUR FAVORITE?”

Yeah, taking out his brother seems like a _really great idea..._

You’re so busy scheming that you’re taken by surprise when you hear her voice.  “How are things going?  I have brought snacks.”

“OH GOODY!” Papyrus exclaims.

Toriel bears a platter.  Frisk jumps up to take a cookie.  “Thanks, mom!” they laugh.

Toriel’s eyes sparkle.  “You’re welcome, my dear!  Um, have as many as you like, everyone!”

_Mom..._  

You can’t bear to watch this anymore.  No one will notice, not that it matters.  You slink underground, finding somewhere else, _anywhere_ else to be.  Not here.  You can’t stay here.

✿ ✿ ✿

If you keep remembering, you might start calling her “mom,” too.  You did that once.  Several timelines ago.  When you came to her, begging for help.  You called her mom.  She cried.  She cradled you in her arms and you waited to feel something.  She was your mother.  Something deep in your being would definitely remember.  She let you stay with her, promising you everything.

She always did that.

She loved to make people happy.  You expected to be happy again.  But you only wound up more and more frustrated over time.  You hated that feeling of emptiness, so you left her without saying goodbye.  Time and time again, you came back, but things were always more or less the same.  So out of curiosity, you killed her.  You took her life, knowing you could go back to your save point whenever you wanted.  You did it as an experiment, expecting to reset right after.

But still, you didn’t feel anything.

You watched her turn to dust underneath you and you stood there for quite some time before leaving her dust in the ruins.  You went outside and killed whenever you felt like it.  If you could kill your own mother, you could kill anyone.

She became just another face.  Just another boring, repetitious part of the cycle.  The next time you restarted, you didn’t even bother to see her.  You didn’t want to look at her.  She had failed.  She disgusted you.

Just another repetition, just another face...

Your mother?  No, you had no mother.  She was merely Toriel.  Killing her gave you a sick pleasure at first, thinking of how disobedient you were being.  You had so much power over her.  But really... what was the point?  Once she was dust, you couldn’t taunt her for not being able to send you to your room or promise you snail pie for dessert if you behaved.

What a sentimental old fool she had been, treating you like you could be saved.

She doesn’t treat you that way anymore.  She treats you like you’re not there most of the time.  It’s easier that way.

✿ ✿ ✿

“Goodnight, Asriel.”  Your mother bent down to kiss your forehead.

“G’night!” you returned.

She walked to Chara’s bed.  “Goodnight, Chara.”

She leaned down to give her a hug.  Usually, Chara hugged back.  Sometimes they remained stiff until your mother left the room.  But tonight, they pressed a kiss to her cheek.  “Goodnight, mom,” they said.

“M—”  Your mother was speechless, frozen in shock.  Finally, she smiled and wiped away a tear.  “Sleep well, my child.  We... we love you so much.”

You jumped out of bed to join them in another hug.  Your mother cried.  You couldn’t remember ever feeling happier in all your life.  When your mother left the room, you heard her sniffling through the hallway.  Finally, you heard her say, “Gorey, did you hear?  Chara... c-called me mom!”

“They did?  W-what about me, am I—”

“G’NIGHT, DAD!” Chara called.

You and Chara giggled as your father gasped.  “Don’t stay up all night kids!” he called gleefully.

Once you could be sure that your parents were out of earshot you whispered, “Chara, I can’t believe it!  Are you serious?”

“Of course I am!  Asriel...”

“Hm?”

“Now... you’re my brother, right?”

“Aw, Chara, I’ve always been your brother!  We were just born in different places.  Nothing could have kept us apart forever!”

“So... I didn’t need to call Toriel mom?”

You frowned in confusion.  “You can call her whatever you want, I think.  Who decided that you can’t call your parents by their first names anyway?”

“Well... you... you said things are better when you share them.  Now we share parents.  We can really be siblings now.”

Something felt off.  You couldn’t be sure what.  But Chara was taking this sharing thing _very_ seriously.  “Well, they’re also your parents because... they care for you and you love them, right?”

“Hmm.”

Through the darkness, you couldn’t see whether that was a yes or a no.  Only a glinting reflection in Chara’s eye.  “Well... I’m glad... so glad you’re here.  We all are.”

“I know.”

“Yeah, we said it a lot, and we’ll keep saying it!  Because we’re a family.”

“Family...”  Chara sighed.  “I love you, Asriel,” they said.

“I... I love you, too!” you whispered.

Where did that come from?  You weren’t sure, but it was nice all the same.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a lot of feelings about this flower....

**Author's Note:**

> OF COURSE I PLAYED PACIFIST ON MY FIRST RUN IM A GIANT FUCKING WEENIE AND COULDNT STAND TO KILL ANYONE.
> 
> Will this fic have a happy ending? Something of the sort. I'm making it up as I go along.
> 
> I want Flowey to have a happy ending. Even the canon Flowey. Doesn't a being without a soul deserve a chance at happiness? I... this flower makes me sad.
> 
> (zeezeepearl.tumblr.com for updates yo.)


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